Devon is fifteen, her school's star goalkeeper, and in a state of denial. The story tells about her eight days in jail on the charge of attempted murder. Through flashback, readers find out what led Devon to the place she's currently in.

This page-turner deals with the issues of teenage pregnancy and its effects on one teenager. This is one I'm glad I picked up for a student. If you liked Th1rteen R3asons Why and/or If I Stay, you'll like After.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

This collection of short stories continues my love affair with Neal Shusterman's writing. I love stories that lead me to predict incorrectly, and that is true of each story in this collection. Here's my question: When will Ralphy Sherman get his own book?

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

I bought this in an effort to broaden my "scary stories" collection. Unfortunately, these stories weren't that scary. The closest they came to being scary was the story "Wait until Martin Comes," but that's because the story scared me as a child reading it from The People Could Fly by Virginia Hamilton.

Monday, March 14, 2011

This is one of those novels where I saw the movie first. I'm noT sure whether or not it clouded my judgment. The movie left out a lot of the Lorien backstory, and I appreciated that information. I liked the characterization of Sarah better in the movie, though. While in both texts she was a character who realizes she doesn't want to be defined by her boyfriend, I felt like her I individuality was more developed in the film text.

There's already a wait list for this novel in my classroom, which I'm rather excited about. I was selfish and wanted to read it first this time.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

I was not sure what to expect when I picked up The Gardener. In content area literacy classes we talk about how to integrate young adult literature into the curriculum, and I think this book would be perfect for a science class studying photosynthesis and plants. It raises current events issues and would be a fantastic starting point for conversation about world events. Here's a way to make science more interesting and relevant for students who are more Language arts and history inclined.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

In a time when there are movies like Paranormal Activity and Saw, etc. it is hard to write a good scary book. I went looking for scary books, and knowing that the Scary Stories collection is popular in my school library, I thought this might be a solid investment. While most of the stories have nice twists at the end, they leave much to be desired in the scary story department. Then again, nothing I've read has scared me quite as bad as IT by Stephen King did.

When a student asked me for a book about teenage pregnancy, this was the first book I thought of. I was disappointed to find out that we didn't have a copy in the library (because I could have sworn that we did). When the second student asked about the same topic, I knew I had to go pick up this title.

First Part Last is written in alternating "Then" and "Now" chapters, and told from the point of view of the father. He is sixteen, discovering that he loves his daughter, and struggling with the role change when he's not done being a child himself.

The story is beautifully told in short enough chapters that it might make an excellent read-aloud.

About Me

I teach Title I Language Arts in a small town on the US/Mexico border. I'm from Indiana. I'm working on my Ph.D. in Curriculum & Instruction with a focus on Literacy, Language and Culture at New Mexico State University.